the quiet mule           The QM Companion

Summer County Fair is a new song by a Quiet Mule contributor, who only goes by the initials "BB." And he has contributed this song, to stay forever in our Quiet Mule archives.

Perhaps this strange place will aid in the birth of a great artist, but in order for that to happen the artist needs to be HEARD. Please extend the good will of the holiday to your ears and click on the link.

- your lovely, young Quiet Mule

Hello All. I have woken and I am hungry. I used to rest on hay, but now I enjoy a hole in the dirt. I breathe in the dirt all winter.

I am sorry to say my hibernation is not very long. Only a month or two. It will take me a while to get the wood burning, but when it starts up the cave will shine with fiery shadows.

Then I can draw cave paintings. If the fire is still going when you see them, it will be like an animated movie. The owls will make the soundtrack.

in solidarity, Quiet Mule

(transcribed by BakeyMan)

It is hard to murder another being, but
I have accomplished
this difficult task.

Who
did I murder?

The question is easier said
than the Answer. Because the
Answer is a big enigma.

Merry Christmas.
OH NO!
The Quiet Mule has just woken up! His hibernation is over

He's gonna kill me noooooooooo

How strange it is that humans should depict themselves in poems, drawings, paintings, sculptures, books, photographs, etc. etc. Any number of mediums, for centuries now. It wasn't long ago that they found a way to record and project themselves onto screens, their numerous, frantic voices fit to accompany the visuals. They've portrayed themselves in these differing mediums quite variously: as heroes, as villains, as tortured geniuses, as lonely geniuses, as misunderstood geniuses. The list goes on. Is it mere vanity that compels them to do so, as the cynic would suggest? Is it an outlet for sexual frustration? Is it a distraction from the pangs of loneliness? It could be any number of these things, or more likely a combination. Whatever the case, it is odd that this compulsion to express oneself doesn't seem to extend to any other members of the animal kingdom. Indeed, the millions of non-human organisms living among us appear satisfied to go about their lives without even keeping track of their birthdays, much less obsessively documenting and expressing their every feeling. Twitter would not appeal to them in the least. No, they are free to live life simply and swiftly and without any mirrors. Of course, they are not burdened/blessed (depending on your outlook) with the self-consciousness and knowledge of death that human beings must cope with. I myself must say "burdened," for the record.

Still, have they no song to cry out to the heavens? Perhaps they do and we are too obtuse and self-absorbed to recognize it...

As it happens, I've long questioned whether I myself harbor a song worth singing anywhere in my shrunken, blackened, barely beating heart. I just took my first crack at songwriting this past summer, haphazardly and intuitively developing a mediocre, meandering piece (of shit) titled "Summer County Fair." To this cold day in December, I forge on in trying to improve it any way I can. Meanwhile, I've found myself getting distracted by other aimless clusters of melodies I've stumbled over, plus some covers I've learned. If I ever actually finish any of this bullshit, I will try to post it on Youtube, at best to be ignored, at worst to be exhibited as a humiliating artifact of my young life on my 40th birthday. Whatever its fate, it feels more meaningful than any of the other things I waste my time doing. At least for now.

I said December 1, but could not meet the deadline. I am busy. Give me two weeks. The Quiet Mule is currently working on a weekly comic called "Plum Cake", an animated short about cave men, a novel called Salmon Head Rising above Water, new downloadable music and other quality entertainment for you, the quiet mule companion.

This is an essay written for school analyzing a Hallmark advertisement.
--------------------------

Hallmark's Appeal for Parental Affection

Ad Taken from Better Home and Garden, June 2009 Issue



A characteristic of the niche magazine is its tendency to display advertisements that would appeal to the targeted readership, but the intended audience of some ads is purposely made ambiguous in order to conceal the manipulative intentions of the company. Being targeted as part of a specific type of person can be unsettling for the consumer, precisely because this can lead the person to feel as if they are being intentionally sought out to consume a product, so a great deal of effort is put in to make the advertisement seem as widely appealing as possible and reduce the overt attempt at personal connection. However, although the average reader of Better Home and Garden views the ads thickening the magazine only as amusing eye candy that catches their attention for a few seconds, it is generally understood that an effective advertisement will strike a deeper personal response that they may not be conscious of. Hallmark's “confidence” ad is a good example of the seemingly innocent attempt to capture consumer attention, which upon further analysis reveals its hidden intentions. The picture features a young girl at school prompted to raise her hand by the acquisition of a card, and is directed towards mothers, who compose the vast majority of the readers to Better Home and Garden. However, the makeup of the ad is intended not only to make the reader question her relationship with her daughter, but her relationship with herself.

The deeper meanings and implications of the picture are hidden by a facade of attractive words and images that put on the front of simplicity. At face value the advertisement may seem like a harmless, lighthearted display, that was composed without much thought, its only goal being to promote childhood success and inspire parents to do the same. If consumers stopped to question the complexity of subtleties of the advertisement, they may be disconcerted by the extreme amount of analysis and thought that goes into attempting to grab their attention, and eventually their money, so it is important for the company's relationship with the consumer to maintain the pretension of simplicity. Once the consumer is attracted by the simple, unassuming nature of the ad, the second intended response is to take refuge in the fantasy world it promotes. These two elements provide the quick “catch” that gets the reader interested; after the mother sees the idyllic fantasy of childhood obedience displayed in a straightforward manner, she would cease to doubt there is any malicious intent. The fact that the concept and execution is particularly absurd and corny would work further to gain the reader's trust, or “confidence.” The choice of this single word as the main text is no mistake; besides it's obvious association with a positive value, its secondary purpose is to make the reader feel secure in the company name being sold.

The composition of the emphasized word, “confidence,” is key to convincing the reader to assume certain things about the nature of the corporation, as well as the integrity and truth of the message. The decision to center the word and make it encompass almost the entire horizontal span of the page is fundamental in asserting that what is is being shown on the page is indeed the ideal embodiment of confidence that a prepubescent girl should display. The ad is implying that the girl's act of succumbing to authority within the confines of an educational institution is the extent to which she can express herself confidently, or at least is so demonstrative of her ability that the image can serve as a definition. The typeface itself has also been specifically chosen by the advertiser to transmit a certain meaning, and correlates with the matter-of-fact style mentioned earlier. The font is plain and all lowercase, which creates the effect of establishing the idea that “confidence” is something basic that the child should already possess, as well as creating the illusion that such a complicated virtue is something that can be acquired and distributed with minimal effort. The diction of the bottom paragraph further proves this as one of the themes of the piece. The final lines express the card exchange as “easy” and the “biggest little thing,” in an attempt to appeal to a targeted demographic, perhaps a mother who feels inadequate about the lack of time spent with her daughter and wants to make up for it. The other motive behind the simple composition of the words, particularly “confidence,” is to associate Hallmark with an easy-going approach to life, and to display it as a company that will assist in problem-solving, as the rest of the ad demonstrates.

If one was to observe closely, it becomes evident that the font for “confidence” has an touch of femininity, as is seen with the use of curly edges. However, not only words but colors as well work within the piece towards presenting a standard view of the female sex. The sweatshirt of the main subject as well as the notebook on the desk are in shades of pink, while the card envelope is a light purple. These seemingly innocent colors have two meanings. Firstly, it lends a reassuring voice to the parent reading that although the girl has confidence, she is not grown up and is still a child. It could also be said that the feminine colors work to balance the masculine implication of the word “confidence,” in order to drive away ideas of rebellion and aggression. Secondly, these colors work as a means to communicate the cultural view of femininity, assuming the mother identifies with these cultural symbols, in order that she better respond to the fictitious girl as a mother figure. In contrast to the main subject's display of stylish pinks and purples, the girl seated behind her is dressed in a more traditional looking outfit of red and blue, which works to identify her both as not meeting the cultural standards of femininity of the day, and as an individual who is behind the main characters in terms of academic achievement. Of course, this setup serves the greater purpose of displaying the girl in the forefront as defeating the competition and making it ahead of other children. The second girl's stance and ambiguous glare suggest that the main character is “stealing her turn.” This appeals to the natural habit of parents to view their children as more important than other children, but fuels the negative aspect of this view which is characterized by the inconsiderate values of competitive capitalism.

It is intentional that the rest of the class is not shown besides the symbolic representation of defeated competition in the background. This exclusion of a community of peers surrounding her is essential to promoting the myth that every person must undergo a purely selfish journey to the top, ignoring the needs of others. Ironically, this very hegemonic belief system that is being presented to the consumer contributes significantly to the loss of confidence and self-worth that is being sold back in the form of a greeting card. Thus, in order to successfully promote their useless product to a potentially doubtful consumer, the advertisers use subtle imagery and composition techniques. Emphasis on her ascension up the academic ladder is made possible with the use of hot air balloon crafts on the blackboard. And while her hand is severed in order to create the illusion of limitless success, hand-shaped turkeys are added in to assist in aesthetic harmony. Finally, the triangular composition created by her outstretched arm successfully pulls the reader back down to the value being promoted: confidence.

While on the outside this ad maintains the illusion of being a thoughtful reminder of the positive effects of parental affection, it holds deeper implications that are potentially harmful. This blatant suggested causality between the purchase of a product and positive personal growth is so absurd that parents would not consciously realize the immediate connection being proposed, or regard it as a lighthearted joke. Normally the advertiser would try to conceal their use of the association principle in order to not appear manipulative, but because the reader is not expecting the outward use of technique, it goes by unnoticed. Hallmark is essentially saying that a card can take the place of actual parental nurturing and respect from which confidence is supposed to arise. Human contact is not presented in a positive light, as is evident with the empty classroom, because ideas of community and genuine understanding do not fit in the hegemony that the company is proposing. Another intention of the advertisers that may not be immediately evident is the direct appeal to the mother reading Better Home and Garden. If one considers that the “her” spoken of in the blurb on the bottom is representative of the woman reading, a whole other side of meanings opens up. It then becomes evident that the ad is speaking, in a sense, to the mother's lack of confidence. After all, if the anonymous girl being targeted for discussion in this ad needs confidence, this lack of confidence likely has at least some origin in the emotional shortcomings of the parents. The advertiser would hope that in order to indirectly deal with emotional immaturity, the mother would take refuge in Hallmark's heavenly vision of their child's development. In other words, the mother might come to the subconscious realization that although she could not promote confidence in herself, she should attempt to create this feeling for her daughter. Hallmark's “confidence card” is put forth as the creator and distributor of confidence where there is none.

Those who created this ad would argue that it advocates a humble return to the traditional exchange of cards as a means of communication, as opposed to the quick, "artificial" text that a parent would be more likely to send. The uncritical consumer would identify with this appeal, and if the advertisers were successful, would feel an emotional response to Hallmark's concern. And this is all that the company was aiming to achieve. They were not intending to replace the short notes left in children's paper bag lunches by their parents with this ad. In reality, Hallmark does not even produce a card that would match the situation. A search of the card inventory on their website reveals that there are no mother-to-daughter cards available for purchase that would serve the purpose of inspiring confidence in such a general situation as being in school; in fact, the closest category to such a card is Get Well Soon, which would only apply if the child were physically sick, not suffering from the symptoms of a life of parental neglect and ignorance that goes hand-in-hand with the assumption that buying a card will help solve any deep rooted emotional issues. By playfully abusing these serious issues, Hallmark likely succeeded in convincing people of the integrity of their company, and thus acquired more potential buyers. This example confirms that even the most apparently harmless advertisements possess darker, more complex meanings.

At this moment I am closing my eyes...and trying to imagine myself in a place that smells better and looks more pleasant. This place can be a house, built out out of wood, and can even have a wood smell to go along with it. To imagine these things I need to relax, so I let my head fall back and lie down.

Everyone that comes in through the door brings in cold air, and discuss the places they've been amongst themselves and how they got there. I alone have no important place to discuss, but they did not ask me so its OK to drift around in thought. Smoke curls around us all from the fireplace anyway, and everyone forgets about how cold it is.

I can see the night coming on even with my eyes closed. The fire becomes the only source of light for all the accomplished travelers. Some get up and grab food from the cupboards, feeling anxious that it will be their last thing to eat, but I know that hunger brings tiredness. When I almost forget where I am, a gentle voice shakes me by the shoulders, and I open my eyes. We laugh for awhile face-to-face, and everyone agrees that the fire is lulling us to sleep. I seem to mingle well with the well-versed.

To understand people is to see them as extensions of yourself. If you hate yourself these extensions are obscured and you can only hate the world. I visited a friend at his humble dorm upstate for the weekend, and analysis of our relations with people, like these ones, became the topic of much of our depressing conversation. Sharing depression with friends is a different experience altogether than dreary isolation, which embodies most our daily living now that we went separate ways, and so dejection is slowly losing it's function within our lives. Complaining and the exchanging of negative thoughts is a bonding experience between friends that can enhance and deepen life, and entertain those who partake in it, but brooding alone, while studying in the room or cooking in the kitchen, helps no one but the lonely old man within the ditches of the mind.

When I arrived I was delighted by the fortress-like buildings and the scenic paths surrounded by trees. All my college had to offer was a few flimsy pathetic plantings along the walkways, so the abundance of natural elements around...streams, rocks, birds besides pigeons and rabbits, overwhelmed by senses and sparked some euphoria inside me. But after my body adjusted to the lavish landscape, I could identify its falseness; It was not any better than the city. Architectural and natural aesthetics do not mix, and never will as long as the human attempts. I decided that I would not be any happier at a campus school.

My friend was stuck in this place, this pseudo city, place of learning, home, whatever it was. Perhaps what was more off-putting to me than the attempt at natural beauty, (which was, admittedly, leagues ahead of my school, and genuinely beautiful in parts) was the stationary and restricted life that the inhabitants lived. I enjoy choosing my own food, cooking, and eating alone. His options were few; he could order a hamburger, an omelette, make a salad, and not know where these ingredients came from. He could go to a show on campus, or walk through the paths, or visit a friend in another dorm, but his options for leaving with limited. He was living where he was being educated. I can't live in an institution I inherently distrust.

We were both dissatisfied with our situation, and so was our mutual friend who was there to visit as well. He abandoned his educational future and regretted it. But besides the dissatisfaction with our basic living situation, we also lamented on our social predicament. We all had lackluster communication and emotional skills, as one would expect, and with our separation we had trouble coping with this. By ourselves our ineptness becomes apparent.

And, in all honesty, I can't think of any reason to elaborate.

When I lived in the suburbs, the act of going outside and communing with nature was a preceded by a conscious, deliberate decision and the idea that this was something I should do, something I needed to do. Usually I would not look forward to it too much, never really found that much enthusiasm within me to go and relax and look at trees, but at least I knew it was important in some way to my well being, so I continued doing it. If I went a week or so without leaving the house except for school or to drive to a friend's place, I would notice that I felt a little more irritable and impatient than normal, and this would only grow until I returned outside. Some summer nights I took to opening the door a crack and breathing three cool breaths when I felt deprived, or opening the porch door and staring up at the stars, and this would suffice for awhile.

But besides the necessary relief from staying indoors, sitting on a computer and eating compulsively these vacations provided, there was little in actual lasting fulfillment that I could take back with me indoors. And there is the first error in my approach. I had the assumption that there was something to take. Upon leaving a more natural environment and entering a more directly capitalist, urban society, it became apparent to me that this strange, inexplicable desire I felt outdoors was misguided by the society in which I lived. Although I tried appreciating the trees and the earth, I always had the impulse that I needed to consume them all, so I could really feel something. This was not some natural irrational desire I was dealing with, but an impulse created by capitalist doctrine that was saturated in me. Of course, there is no way to "consume" nature into your individual self besides by the processes that are already going on; breathing, drinking, eating. But society planted in me the idea that I needed more than this, and so I was continually dissatisfied.

I am also becoming more aware of other strange, unnatural impulses. By "more aware" I mean my mind is constantly reminding me of these unnecessary and detrimental habits, whereas before I was only vaguely questioning them. One is the notion that everything I want needs to occur all at once, immediately. To most this would seem like the familiar mindset of an immature baby, but a state of mind they themselves don't possess. But the reason that people with all the basic necessities are dissatisfied is because they exhibit this mindset in their everyday life. They are sad because firstly, they want something...love, a certain food, more money, control...and secondly because they don't have this particular thing in the present moment. In time, all of these things will potentially arise, if the conditions are right. If they don't arise, then the conditions aren't right. Wanting something immediately and expecting it to appear for you is a completely useless and immature desire, that will only fuel dissatisfaction because it doesn't work within the framework of nature and time anyway.

Unfortunately, this impulse pervades my life, and is particularly annoying and painful because I am more aware of it now. Even if you ignore the impracticality of it, in terms of enjoyment, life operating on these impulses would not even be interesting or appealing if you could consume whatever you want, whenever you want. Sometimes I have the desire for another food while eating and beginning to feel full. But if I acted on this and did go get a bagel after my soup, the bagel would be sort of unsatisfying. And I do things like this frequently. I am slowly beginning to figure out that this is a very backwards way of thinking and operating.

The other idea I have is that I need to worry about money and focus on accumulating as much as I can. Most Americans know this feeling as well. And I think that once I get enough, I will be able to rest and have one less thing to worry about. Of course this is completely unrealistic; I will probably not be able to make a great fortune off of comics or writing, and even if I do make a living off of it I will have to continually work hard in order to survive. The dreamlike nature of this goal is useful to some extent; it's something I can make up to look forward to. But it pervades my ambitions and makes me feel like I cannot do anything until I make this money, which of course is completely counterproductive. And besides, without the stress I don't think I would do anything at all. I'm going to have to find a way out of these habitual thought patterns, which first means listening to them attentively, and enduring their repetitions in my mind throughout the day. Maybe then I can sit down in my grande studio with Brian and Katie and draw some fine, fine comics.